The New Lebanon Farmland Conservation Project Needs To Raise $171,000

In late 2007 the Town of New Lebanon was awarded $513,150 for the permanent protection of Shaker View Farm, one of the Town’s most important farm properties, through a New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets grant.  The highly competitive grant round awarded a total of $34.78 million to 35 farms throughout the State, with requests totaling more than $67 million. The grant will enable the acquisition of the farm’s development rights through a conservation easement that will be placed on the land. This easement will ensure that the land will always be available for farming. Securing this permanent protection of farmland promotes several of the Town of New Lebanon’s Comprehensive Plan objectives for the benefit of current residents as well as for future generations.
The Opportunity
This project presents New Lebanon with the opportunity to protect its open space, retain its agriculture and its rural character and maintain and preserve its scenic beauty. These were the issues that New Lebanon citizens considered significant in their responses to surveys and public workshops during the Comprehensive Plan process and that were embodied in the Comprehensive Plan itself.  For Comprehensive Plan reference see the Town Web site (www.townofnewlebanon.com) or the hard copy document retained in the Town Clerk’s office and the New Lebanon Library.
The benefits to the Town and its residents are many. In addition, benefits from a project of this nature accrue at the County and State levels as well.
The Process
To qualify for a grant from this program, the landowner must volunteer and demonstrate a willingness to surrender development rights to the property. Working with the Town Government (the State mandated official applicant) and supported by the Columbia Land Conservancy (the facilitator and monitor of the project, www.clctrust.org), significant pre-work (land analysis and conservation planning) had to be completed to accompany the application. The process is very demanding and required approximately a year of preparation before the application could even be submitted for consideration. Once approved, the project required various actions such as a land survey, property appraisal, title verification and numerous other steps.
The Shaker View property was awarded the grant as a result of meeting stringent requirements established by the State of New York. Foremost among these requirements were:
•    Superior soil quality
•    Overall property condition
•    Total environmental impact within the community
The Next Steps
Through this Department of Agriculture and Markets grant the State funds 75% of the total cost of the project. In order to fulfill the grant requirements, the landowner, the Town (as applicant) and the greater community must raise the remaining 25% of the costs. That is where the New Lebanon Community can play a very important role in the process. In order to achieve the 25% funding requirement, it will be necessary to raise approximately $171,000 by January 31, 2010. That is a significant challenge. It is achievable if we all – the landowner, the Town of New Lebanon and the community – work together to generate the enthusiastic support, financial and otherwise, that this project deserves.
In the near future Comprehensive Plan Committee members will be calling on New Lebanon residents to further explain the opportunities and requirements and to discuss the role they might wish to play in support of this community effort.